Chinese Carbon Frames

[uksteve]

steve from london here - this i my first post - hello everyone.

i've been looking some of the chinese carbon frames selling on ebay. has anyone tried any of them? they seem pretty cheap but r they safe?

I found some good info at http://cheapcarbonframes.com/category/frames/ but are there any shops that sell them?

 

[Globalti]

steve from london here - this i my first post - hello everyone.

i've been looking some of the chinese carbon frames selling on ebay. has anyone tried any of them? they seem pretty cheap but r they safe?

I found some good info at http://cheapcarbonfr...ategory/frames/ but are there any shops that sell them?

I'd be willing to bet that there are already a good few Chinese carbon frames being ridden around with fancy brand names on them. Maybe not the big ones like Trek and Spesh though.

 

[ttcycle]

I think Trek and Specialized also get their frames done in the Far East.

 

[shippers]

I think Trek and Specialized also get their frames done in the Far East.

Malaysia, accrding to the chap in the bike shop.
Most of the top carbon frames come from only 2 or 3 companies and have different stickers on them.
I think he said Giant were different, but not necessarily better.

 

[Crimmey]

Here's my cheap carbon frame from ebay, also being sold as a branded model elsewhere. Love it. Will not hesitate to do again.

 

[Cyclist33]

That bike looks Very Hot!

 

[xpc316e]

That bike looks Very Hot!

+1 It's as hot as a very hot thing. I just love the look of naked carbon in the morning.

 

[HJ]

Hot? that is down right scary...

 

[HLaB]

That bike looks Very Hot!

Do you mean it was a steal

Nice bike btw

 

[gaz]

 

[uksteve]

i liked the look of this bike: http://cheapcarbonframes.com/2010/07/aikendrums-fm015-build/ bcoz it has some good pictures.

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[font="'trebuchet ms"]but I am wondering if I am better off and safer buying one of the part carbon frames shown here: [/font]http://cheapcarbonframes.com/2010/0...ranty-from-a-company-youve-actually-heard-of/. they seem unbeleivably cheap and come from the uk too.

 

[Crimmey]

Depends how serious you are or want to get really. Those frames from Vitus are Alu with carbon seat stays and are heavy compared to the Chinese stuff coming through. If you can afford to lose £3-400 or whatever and go through the hassle of trying to claim it back or claim if it gets damaged in transit then go for it now. I took a risk and it paid off. You may have to pay import duty on the item too. There is nothing wrong with the chinese frames or forks, very light, and come very well packed and are made as well/same as most branded stuff. I'm sure people will argue otherwise but that's not from my experience. Some of the nicer/cheaper ones are usually listed in dollars but still ship to uk. Delivery was 'quick' too, within a week and half.

Buying from CRC is obviously safe just depends what your attitude to risk/hassle is Good Luck. There are some uk local bike shops selling the cheap frames under their own brand which have come from the same place as the ebay stuff does but cost £200-300 ish more.

 

[uksteve]

You may have to pay import duty on the item too.

how much can import duty be?

 

[Will1985]

Pretty much all carbon frames are manufactured in the Far East, so absolutely nothing wrong with them. The stuff they export should be safe so no real need to worry - manufactured goods which stay in China apparently don't meet the same quality standards.

Take the wheels on Crimmey's bike for example - they are unbranded 88mm rims from a factory in the Far East (which could also be sourced from a site like alibaba) and then stickered + lacquered before being shipped to the UK for selling. The brand effectively does marketing and a bit of sourcing.

As has been said, most frames are manufactured by one of several companies and then given the branding treatment - carbon frames are produced in the Far East because it is cheap and they have the technical know-how. You won't find (m)any bike brands who have established a factory in China, for instance, due to the necessity of finding a local business partner who has the expertise to produce quality items while keeping costs down - it's far easier to outsource the work.

The exception to Far Eastern production is the very high end kit such as Trek's SC9 and Madone 6.9, and Zipp wheels which is made in America. Nothing different in the final product really if working from the same design - just that some firms like to keep their technology in-house (they don't like intellectual property theft!), and their patriotic consumers like products made in the US.